Darley's 2014 Newmarket 2,000 Guineas winner Night of Thunder (IRE) shuttled to
Australia for just one season in 2016, but Australian breeders may regret he
has not been a more regular visitor as his burgeoning results in the Northern
Hemisphere indicate the son of Dubawi may be well above average as a sire.
Trained by Mark Johnston, two year-old colt Thunderous scored a length win in
the Denford Stakes at Newbury and is now undefeated in winning three from
three.
A 70,000 guinea Tattersalls October purchase for John and Jake Warren, Thunderous
runs for Highclere Racing.
"Thunderous has got
scope and I think he's a very nice horse for next year as well. He's a good way
of going and Franny Norton said he was very much in command the whole way. He
looked around when he hit the front, but I think he's a very nice prospect,"
said owner's representative John Warren.
"We'll keep upping the grade as he keeps producing the goods. He is a great,
big powerful horse. Mark has always thought he's a class horse and he's proving
his worth now."
Thunderous is the first winner for stakes-winning Dalakhani mare Souviens Toi.
He is the second stakes-winner from the first Northern Hemisphere crop for
Night of Thunder joining Under the Stars and is among 14 winners from just 29
starters with two of those winners stakes-placed Thunderspeed and Sun Power.
With 48% winners to runners, Night of Thunder is doing an impressive job which
will give plenty of optimism to those who own Australian bred two year-olds by
this under-rated son of Dubawi that stood for 15,000 pounds at Darley's Dalham
Hall base in 2019.